Two local Welsh-speaking Senedd Members have raised their concerns that children in Pembrokeshire are being refused a Welsh medium education due to demand for local school places outstripping supply.
Samuel Kurtz MS and Paul Davies MS – Pembrokeshire’s two local Senedd Members – initially raised their concerns following growing scrutiny of Pembrokeshire County Council’s draft Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP), which showed that significant parts of the county had no access to Welsh-medium education.
Concerns were initially raised by Tenby Councillor, Mike Evans, during a Scrutiny Committee review of the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan, last week.
Speaking about this matter, Samuel Kurtz, MS for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, said:
“A long-term strategic plan is absolutely necessary if we’re to continue to support the growth in Welsh-language speakers in Pembrokeshire. It’s a language that belongs to all of us and it’s encouraging to see it grow in non-traditional areas.
“However, it’s clear to me that local services are unable to meet the current demand in Welsh-medium education.
“Not only is this creating a postcode lottery for local families, but it means that parents are having to forgo their children’s first choice of education, which given the Welsh Government’s Cymraeg 2050 target, should not be happening.
“If the Welsh Government want to meet their target of 1 million Welsh speakers by 2050, then they have to work with local authorities – such as Pembrokeshire County Council – to ensure that supply meets demand.
Preseli Pembrokeshire Senedd Member, Paul Davies MS added:
“I’ve received correspondence from parents who want to send their children to a Welsh medium school and have been denied the opportunity, either because there is no local provision or because schools are at their full capacity.
“This postcode lottery cannot be allowed to continue. It’s causing anxiety and stress for families when the reality is that parents should have access to Welsh medium education if they want it.
“Therefore, the Welsh Government and Pembrokeshire County Council must redouble their efforts and address this issue as a matter of urgency.
